Chicken Larb

Chicken Larb

from Ellen's kitchen, with thanks to Fowler, Mego, and thewoksoflife.com

Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup uncooked Jasmine rice
• 2 tbs vegetable oil
• 3 shallots (thinly sliced, divided)
• 1 1/4 lb ground chicken (I like to chop chicken breasts myself, but your call)
• 1/2 tsp sugar
• 2 tbs fish sauce
• 2 limes, juiced
• 1-2 Thai bird chiles (thinly sliced)
• 3 scallions (thinly sliced)
• 1/4 cup cilantro (roughly chopped)
• 1/2 cup fresh mint (roughly chopped)
• salt
• bibb, romaine, boston lettuce (washed and dried)

In:

• dry wok or pan over low heat, toast the rice until golden and fragrant, about 10 minutes.  Grind into coarse powder, with mortar and pestle or spice grinder.

Heat:

• wok over high heat and add 2 tbs of oil.  Fry half the shallots in the oil until crispy.  Remove shallots from the wok, leaving the remaining oil.

Place:

• wok back on high heat until smoking.  Add ground chicken.  Stir until browned and crispy, and then add sugar, fish sauce, and lime juice.  

Stir-fry:

• for another minute, and add toasted rice powder, chiles, rest of raw shallots, scallions, cilantro, and mint.  Stir-fry for another minute, and then taste for seasoning, adding salt, or more sugar, fish sauce, and/or lime juice if desired.

Serve:

• in lettuce cups topped with crispy shallots.